A Different Kind of Alpha
by SOPROL
Summary: Kira is Alpha of the Beacon Peak Pack. A strange feat, not only of her age, but her gender and that she is the fifth most dominant Alpha in North America. Please Read and Review! Any feedback is greatly appreciated!
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: This story is my attempt to get back into writing. Essentially, for the past six months, I have been stuck with my writing, so it was suggested to me to get back to why I write in the first place so I thought to go back to the format that got me writing in the first place: fanfiction. Kira and Thurin kind of jumped into my head this afternoon and after several hours of writing, I have this chapter. I'll be posting chapter two before the night is through, but I thought to just jump in now with the first chapter before I lost my nerve. I DO NOT know where this story is leading me. All I know is that I am working with characters and a place, and that there is a focus on where it might go. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters or places or themes of the world of Mercy Thompson and Charles/Anna which is created by Patricia Briggs. I only own my original characters as well as anything you do not recognize from the books Patricia Briggs wrote. I am making no money off of writing this fanfiction story. **

**Chapter One**

Kira ran through the woods. It was her usual path just outside of her small town in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the Rocky Mountains, Canada. The pine trees along with the aspen created a blanket that protected the path from harsh sun overhead. Summer only lasted for maybe two to three months here, so usually the sun wasn't usually the issue; the snow was. The path was made from all the animals that had already ran through the trees on migratory paths or on the hunt. She should know, after all, she was one of them.

She was a werewolf in a town made mostly of werewolves with very few humans in town so hiding what she was never was an issue. The secret that the entire world didn't know did not apply to the town of Beacon Lake, which nestled itself in secret just a bit south west of Jasper by Beacon Peak. It was ideal for a town hiding from the world with no worries that the world might visit, just an overly ambitious back trails hiker once every five years. With one dirt road which was snowed in during the winter and a mud puddle the rest of the time, the town didn't exactly advertise itself as a tourist spot.

Kira pushed on, trying to make her way around the lake. She went on this run to clear her head, but anyone who knew her knew that she only ran the entire way if she had just received a phone call that put her in a bad mood, and most times, those phone calls came from Montana. Unlike the werewolf packs to the south, the Beacon Peak Pack was one of three in Canada which the male hierarchy did not apply. Anyone could be Alpha, as long as they were able to earn it. And earn it, Kira did.

Most of the men in her pack had backed down easily once she had Changed and started to make her way through the ranks. Some even tried to bring her down in a physical fight, but her speed and endurance had made her tough to catch, let alone get a hit in. She was trained as a child of a werewolf father and human mother pairing in the art of protecting herself when the odds are stacked highly against her, as most times they were. Just standing at a little over five feet nothing and having a petite body type did not scream physical strength, so Kira had been taught strategy and endurance. Most fights lasting over five minutes would end in a lucky shot. Fights lasting over ten, it was all about who was still standing and not dying from exertion. And that is what she specialized in. The other women in her pack had allowed her to simply dominate over them as they recognized a true leader whether it held a male form or female. It was not about the body, it was about the spirit and the mind.

The phone call that led to this particular run was from Bran, the Marrok, the Alpha of all Alphas across North America, and one of four people who were more dominant that she was, three of which were his sons. He was insisting that she and her Beta, Thurin Greenleaf, a man who was thirty years her senior and had watched her grow up and make the Change for the first time six years ago, make a trip to Aspen Creek to visit him, a request which is a hidden demand which in turn is also code for she is in trouble for one reason or another. Or that he was going to ask her to do something for him which, once again, is a not so well hidden command. By the time she finishes the usual loop around the lake, just over a two hour run, she would be able to look at everyone and have a reasonable answer of what they were going to do.

Kira knew that she was nearing the end of her procrastinating run when her legs started to feel the usual burn that signalled an uphill incline was happening on the path. It was the last leg that was always the most challenging as it was long and climbed up around fifty meters in a span of five minutes of running, a killer for anyone's legs, including the healing ones of a werewolf. She still did not have a way out of meeting Bran, something she disliked doing from the first time she met him when he was the one who Changed her, to the times she's had to meet him for the annual meeting of the Alphas, which was still another six months, three weeks, and four days away, not that she was counting.

Thurin was standing at the top of the crest with a bottle of water in his hand by his waist. The other was on his hip as he waited for her to reach him, his usual position for when they needed to chat after her runs. He handed her the bottle once Kira had reached him but walked with her down to the village and through it to her house by the lake. They walked in silence while Kira drank half of the water in one go before pouring the rest on her head to help cool her down.

"Any ideas?" he asked, keeping his voice low, but also knowing that the majority of people in town could still hear them if they were paying attention.

"Besides ideas of how to get back at Bran from whatever he is going to tell us, I have nothing. I am going to talk with Mercy again soon though if I am to actually get him back without him immediately kicking our butts back here black and blue." She responded, keeping her eyes forward. To anyone who didn't know them, they looked similar in age, both appearing around eighteen and nineteen, but with Thurin being well into his fifties and Kira only being twenty four, they treated each other more like father and daughter. In a way, they were, as Thurin is still Kira's father's best friend and her godfather.

"Did you ask why he wanted to see us with such urgency?" Thurin asked patiently.

"What do you think? I did, but Bran only responded with his usual 'I will tell you when you get here' line." Kira said with a slight bitter grit to her voice. It wasn't that she disliked Bran, it was just that Bran thought of her not as an Alpha but a rather petulant child with a too modern day idealistic view on how things should be run in a pack. Compared to him, she was.

"Then we should go see him. More than likely, he just wants your help with something, and he doesn't want to just yell at you for promoting gender equality." Thurin said.

Kira shrugged. "He wants us to leave tomorrow morning, meaning we'll get there right around supper time if we drive all day."

"It's not completely unreasonable for him to ask us to come out of the blue. You are among the top five Alphas in North America. He knows we keep our passports up to date and with the full moon still three weeks away and no new wolves that need to learn control in our pack, we can easily go to see him for a week at most." Thurin tried to reason out.

Kira smiled at him as they neared her home which sat overlooking the town and the lake. It was a grand log home with lots of windows and pine trees around it to make it look like it had jumped out of a painting. "Good try. I prefer to keep thinking that he is a jerk who likes to see if I still jump when he says to." She climbed up the stairs and opened the door that was never locked. Who needs locks when you have claws and teeth to defend yourself?

**Please Review! I would love to hear opinions or excitement or even ideas!**

**SOPROL**


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's note: It took me a long time to realize my time in the story, where all the characters are in their own stories in reference to Kira's. Please read the following note as it might clear up where this story is in perspective to the books. As always, please leave a review! I would truly appreciate knowing what people think of my little story!**

_**READ BEFORE READING THE CHAPTER! **_**THIS STORY IS SET ABOUT FIVE YEARS AFTER SAMUEL MET ARIANA WHICH IS ABOUT THREE YEARS AFTER CHARLES MET ANNA****. SO, KIRA AND SAMUEL HAD NOT SPENT A LOT OF TIME TOGETER AS Samuel was mostly in the TriCity area by the time Kira was born. With her being more dominant than even her parents, the only two people who could force discipline on her were Bran and Charles. With Bran being exasperated by this unruly pup, he mostly sent Charles to force her back to face her problems instead of running away. While Kira had run into the woods, Charles and her had a lot of conversations about self discipline and how to assert her dominance in a positive manner instead of the destructive manner that ruled her life until she was nine when Bran, Charles and her dad finally figured her out. Then, Charles brought her under his wing and started to teach her about the world around her. With his and Anna's guidance, Kira was finally able to understand why she had the views that she had about people. Bran, Charles, Kira's dad, and Kira all knew that she would try the Change when she turned eighteen by the time she was ten, so they essentially trained her how to be an Alpha of a pack from the time she was ten. SO KIRA HAD ALREADY STARTED HER PATH TO BEING ALPHA OF BEACON PEAK BY THE TIME SAMUEL MET ARIANA AND SO KIRA AND ARIANA HAD NEVER MET PRIOR TO THIS TIME.**

**Disclaimer: As always, I do not own anything that you recognize from Patricia Brigg's books! I only own Kira and Thurin along with the stories they tell me. I do not make any money off of this story.**

**Chapter Two**

The following morning came too early for Kira as her alarm woke her before the sun began its route over the horizon and across the sky. The blaring alarm was quickly shut off only to be followed by a groan. She was not a morning person. Unfortunately for her, Thurin was.

"Good morning sleepy head!" Thurin sang loudly as he barged into her room.

Kira hid her head under a pillow and flipped her middle finger at his general direction. "Go away. No sensible person is up at this time." She grumbled.

"If we want to get there by night fall, with the hiking to the vehicles we have to do, we need to leave in an hour and I figured you would like time for a shower, but if you would rather bath in the stream, by all means, stay in bed." Thurin said gently, knowing that her grumpiness was not aimed solely at him but rather anyone who didn't allow her to sleep through dawn. He placed a mug of fresh coffee on her bedside table and left the room without another word.

Kira groaned again. Thurin really did know her too well. Why he was less dominant than her, everyone could only guess, but he at least brought bribes with him when they needed to be up before her mind said it could logically be up. She peeked at the coffee, the steam wafting through her chilled room air. Grabbing it while sitting up in bed, she sipped on it before looking around her room.

It was rather large with an ensuite located off in the corner beside the floor to ceiling window overlooking the lake. On most days, she could see wildlife drinking at the lake, fish jumping, and birds preparing for flight. Today, there were two elk on the other side of the lake that she could see. She had blinds but most nights never bothered to close them.

Another sip of coffee is what it took to get her out of bed and into her ensuite to start the shower. Her house was large. It had to be to host any number of injured wolves or people who simply needed help. It also hosted any meetings that took place, and that is why she had invested a rather large fortune in ensuring running water got to the town, electricity, as well as the ability to have air conditioning and a solid heater for the dramatic changes in temperature the town was used to having. She needed to make sure that in the event of disaster, her house would be the safe house, a fort that could be looked at for anything by the town.

Twenty minutes later, she was finishing her first cup of coffee while walking down the stairs to the kitchen with her backpack slung over one shoulder and her dressed in comfortable clothes for the inevitable twelve kilometer hike to the parking lot which hosted most of the vehicles for the pack. No sense in getting their vehicles stuck on the one road in which was unreliable most of the year. Better to walk and know you are getting out. She was dressed in hikers' slacks and hiking boots, a tighter workout top with an undone sweater and her brown waist length hair in French braids down her back. She would need to change before seeing Bran, but for a day of hiking and sitting in a vehicle, it will do.

Thurin stood there ready to go with another mug full of coffee in one hand and a plate of eggs with sausage in the other. He handed her the plate before giving her the mug. Kira sat down at the breakfast nook, munching slowly on the eggs. Her wolf was pacing under the skin, wanting to be on the move already, but her human mind was still dragging its butt out of bed with a teddy bear in one hand.

"Have the passports?" She asked between bites.

"Of course, and the maps, and a first aid kit in case Bran changes his mind about kicking your butt blue." Thurin joked. He knew that teasing her in the morning might get his head chomped off, but at least he would be able to know that she still was alive then.

Good to his knowledge, Kira sent a subtle glare at him. "I hope he doesn't." She finished the last of the eggs before downing the rest of the coffee. She placed her plate and mug in the sink filled with soapy water, washed them quickly before rinsing them and placing them on the rack to dry. "Okay, let's get going before I lose my nerve and insist we stay here."

Kira stopped by the bathroom off of the kitchen to brush her teeth while Thurin strapped his pack to his back. His was about the same size as her, stuffed with enough clothes and supplies for a week. He was rechecking the pocket with the passports when she emerged, grabbed her pack and swung it on her shoulders, doing the straps across her waist with a satisfactory snap. Her Third, Shawn Thunder, was watching television in the living room.

"Have fun getting your asses kicked! I have things here." He called as they passed through.

"Have fun getting your ass kicked when I get back for that comment!" Kira said calmly without even looking. Shawn was crude, but would not burn the town down before they got back, and he also knew that Kira could and would teach him a lesson the second he walked over the line. He wasn't there yet.

Thurin opened the door before following Kira out and shutting the door behind them. They walked through the town and up the road leading out of it. The sun was creeping over the horizon and the mountains surrounding the lake were cast in sun light. They hiked in comfortable silence for the hour that it took to get to the paved parking lot with all the vehicles.

Her blue jeep was the one they had picked for their journey. After they had thrown their packs in the back and grabbed the water bottles from their packs, she got into the driver's side of the vehicle. Thurin got into the passenger side with the passports in hand as Kira started the jeep. Then, they drove south.

Aspen Creek came into view just as the sun was about to set. Even though Beacon Peak and Aspen Creek seemed close in geography, with the wait times at the border and all the back roads it takes to get from point A to point B, it literally took the entire day. Kira and Thurin were feeling the strain of the long day just as they pulled up to Bran's mansion. She put the jeep into park and turned the vehicle off.

Kira put her forehead on the steering wheel and closed her eyes. "I'm not ready to face him." She said tiredly.

"Well, he already knows we're here. Time to face the music." Thurin said just as tiredly. They both just wanted a night's sleep after the long day they had.

Kira got out stiffly, grabbed her pack from the back and slung it over her shoulder as she stifled a yawn. "Come on, we can do this." She said.

Bran stood at the open door. "I'm glad you could make it, Kira. I have supper for both of you in the dining room ready, but if you want to get settled in your normal rooms first, I understand."

Thurin grabbed at Kira's back pack on her shoulder. "I'll put these in the rooms. I figure you and Bran have some talking to do." He said walking into the house with both back packs slung over his shoulders, leaving Kira with Bran standing outside.

Bran smiled gently to her. "Shall we have dinner then?" he asked, gesturing her inside.

Kira eyed him before walking slowly up the stairs and into the house. "I just want to know why it was so important for Thurin and I to be here today, but I guess supper works just as well." She muttered under her breath.

"I heard that you know." Bran said while walking behind her. "Dining room, now, and you know where it is."

She did. She had spent the first fifteen years of her life living in Aspen Creek with her family before her dad got transferred to Beacon Peak where Bran and her dad decided it was best for Kira to remain in Aspen Peak to continue her education with Charles. Bran and she had rarely gotten along. Mostly from her views of how a pack should be run, and his insistence that life could not go the way she wanted it to go all the time. Several times, she had ran away into the woods, and Bran would either go get her himself, or send another to bring her back, as if she couldn't survive out in the woods for a few days alone. His favourite lackeys of choice: Asil or Charles, both of which freaked her out; Asil simply because of his world view of disliking any change and his annoying habit of convincing her that it was her idea to return, and Charles because he would simply put her over his shoulder and drag her back to town to face Bran again. Bran could have forced her to stay, but he never did. And Kira could never figure out why not.

Once she was in the dining room, she could see that dinner was indeed set out, but for more than just Kira, Thurin and Bran. Charles and Anna were there along with Samuel and Arianna who all were chatting at their places before noticing that Kira and Bran had walked in and falling silent. Bran's mate Leah was notably not there.

"Kira." Samuel said with a smile and a nod. It was his standard greeting to her, warm.

She smiled at him. "Samuel. I'm glad to finally meet the infamous Arianna." Kira said pleasantly, nodding to her, but knowing better than approaching too quickly. She had been warned through the many phone calls that Samuel and Kira had shared that Arianna took time and that visits with his family were nearly pushing her flight nature. So, space. "Charles and Anna, always a pleasure to see you again."

Anna was the only to get up and approach Kira to give her a hug. Charles as per his nature stood up with his mate and waited until she returned to her seat to sit back down. "Welcome back, squirt." Charles said with a slight smirk. It was his nickname for her that he only used when others outside of his family were not around and when Kira was not in trouble. It came from her being smaller than most in every point in her life, from her werewolf shape to her human shape. He usually kept his stoic face up around everyone except a very select few, but being one of two people who went into the woods after her, they had a bond that few could understand or explain.

Kira sat down at one of the free spots at the table, being sure to avoid the head of the table that Bran always sat at. The smell of elk stew was coming from a covered pot that sat in the middle of the table. There was only one spot left after Bran had taken his seat at the head of the table. The entire room was left in silence for only half a minute before Thurin joined them in silence before sitting down himself quickly. Bran reached forward to start the dinner.

Kira would definitely classify this dinner as one of the most awkward that she has ever had. Very few people talked, and even then, Kira assumed correctly that Anna was the only reason that they even had that much conversation. When all was over and cleaned up, Bran stood up.

"Kira, would you join me in my study? Samuel, Charles, I would like your presences as well." He said before leaving the room, knowing his request would be obeyed.

Kira turned to Thurin. "At least I won't have to wait long until I know why we were summoned here." She said with a small smile that showed slight nervousness.

"You'll be fine. I'll see you in your room after your meeting if you need to talk." Thurin said, returning the smile.

After Charles and Samuel had finished saying their farewells for now to their mates, Samuel led the way to the study followed by Charles and Kira. Bran stood there, looking out the large window into the dark woods as they entered.

"Close the door, Kira. We have a lot to discuss." Bran said without turning around to look at the three of them.

**Please Review! I would really appreciate any feedback!**

**SOPROL**


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: Thank you to Lonely Rider for submitting a review! I hope you enjoy this chapter along with more of our favourite characters! Also, I was trying for this to be up on Monday, but seeing as it is now Friday night, all I can say is that life got busy, but I am going to try to update at least one chapter a week!**

**Disclaimer: Everything you recognize is not mine, but Patricia Briggs'. Kira and Thurin are mine however! I am not making money off of this story.**

**Chapter Three**

Kira quietly closed the door while keeping her eyes on Bran. Charles and Samuel had already taken their usual seats by the desk, but waited until she had taken the seat between the two of them to truly relax into the seats. Bran turned to face them.

"I was talking with Adam and Mercy yesterday." He began slowly, choosing his words carefully. "And they have agreed with me that you seem lost as an Alpha. All you know is what Charles and I taught you and what you have done at Beacon Peak. You never got the chance to explore yourself."

"What are you talking about? My pack is stable and happy." Kira said.

"You have been training and working since you were ten. Fourteen years without a break during crucial years of discovery. You need a vacation and time to discover yourself. Not Alpha Kira, but Kira as a woman." Bran said, sitting down in his chair behind the desk.

"So, what are you suggesting?" Kira asked after a few moments of silence.

Bran stared at her before leaning forward and putting his elbows on his desk. "I am saying that you need to go and spend time with a normal pack, not just yours and mine. You need to be mentored in how to manage the needs of the pack and your own needs, along with how to be eloquent and elegant when it comes down to the Alpha meetings. My thought is that you go and spend some time with Adam and Mercy and their pack and Thurin will handle the affairs of the Beacon Peak Pack for a few months."

At that last word, Kira cringed. "Months?" she asked.

"Months." Bran confirmed. "At least six, and if you can prove to me that you have learned something new by the time the annual Alpha meeting comes around, you will be allowed to return to your pack. Your pack is stable enough for you to take this time for you. I will be monitoring Thurin and your pack that you don't need to worry about them. But you are going to burn yourself out by this time next year if you don't go. To avoid you losing control, I feel like it is in your best interest to take this time to discover yourself and to not have to worry about your pack for a few months."

Kira closed her eyes and breathed deeply. Her wolf roared under her skin. How dare he say that she will break. How dare what she can and cannot do. But her human side reasoned that he had probably seen this situation before and that she needed to trust his judgement in this case as he is the Marrok. The two sides argued back and forth in her mind before she managed to calm down. "So, when do I leave for the Tri-Cities? And what about the visa that I need for staying in the States for that long?" she asked, looking down at her feet.

"In two days, with Samuel and Arianna. You will be staying with Warren, Adam's Third, and his mate Kyle at their house. Their entire pack has been briefed that you are coming and to not try to antagonize you. You may keep your things that you brought here, but I suspect that you will be asked to go shopping for a new wardrobe, so I am giving you access to one of the accounts I had set up for you for this purpose. You may contact Thurin for updates once a week and each day of the full moon cycle. And I filled out the paperwork for your visa and it has been approved and already put inside of your passport." Bran said, shifting paperwork on his desk before handing her a single piece of paper detailing all the rules around her banishment to Adam's pack. "You might see this as a punishment for the first few days, but I cannot afford to lose you. As an Alpha who I can trust with some challenging wolves, but more as a female wolf who can hold her own against the men and women who think they can challenge authority in the hopes of getting their own way. You are the hope for the future, one where dominance is obtained through spirit and mind, not simply whether you are male or female. I have hopes to bring you out to the public by the next Alpha meeting as a model female wolf who is a strong, independent woman but who also can embody grace and elegance."

"I am being sent away to a form of finishing school in other words." She said dead panned.

Bran sighed. "In a way, yes. You are a strong, independent wolf, but a woman who embodies grace and elegance? Not at all. You would much rather run in the woods then go shopping or even care about your appearance. Also, Thurin reported to me that you have been running twice a day on average over the past three months. You went from running four times a week to that in only two years, making me believe that there is something underneath that is making you afraid of losing control. You always used running as a release of tension or fear, so something is causing you to make you more stressed out making you run more often with less relief after the run." He explained. "I cannot have you stressed out all the time without being able to resolve it or find relief. I need you to go and figure out why you are stressed while finding out who you are."

Kira considered his words carefully. "So why did you need Charles and Samuel here to tell me that I am being sent to Adam's pack?" she asked slowly.

"Charles is the one who is going to be checking in on you with Anna to see your progress and to also take you through a few rituals like you did when you were younger. Samuel and Arianna have asked me to ask you to help Arianna with wolves in their wolf shape when you feel more relaxed. You are possibly one of the very few people who don't come out of the Change and immediately seek violence despite being an Alpha." Bran explained. "Also, if you tried to jump at me after I had told you that you are going into Adam's pack for a time, they could catch you before you had made it over the desk."

Kira smirked. "I still have that temptation, but I also know that even if I did try to jump you, I would end up more black and blue than I desire. Samuel, I will help you and Arianna to conquer her fear. Charles, you and Anna coming to visit me to go through the meditative rituals we had done when I was younger will be a nice change from learning how to dress and act like a lady." She said with a slight tone at the word 'lady'.

"Well, now that that has been sorted. Is there anything else you wish to discuss tonight?" Bran asked.

"Unless you still want to beat me black and blue, I would like to go and think about this." Kira said gently with a joking tone, hoping that she would be able to escape this room.

"Only if you return to your room and stay there until breakfast time." Bran specified with a slight push of Alpha power to ensure his words would be heard and obeyed.

Kira felt the power wash over her shoulders and hold her to Bran's words. She stood, nodded to the three Cornicks and left the room, walking quickly to her own room in the opposite end of the house of Bran's.

The mansion was set up almost as a maze with many hallways and a ton of rooms to host any number of people and werewolves. Her room were in the basement with a small window looking out into the woods behind the mansion. It was a medium sized room, fairly plain in creature comforts with just a bed and a small desk, but her quilts that she collected and made during her teenage years still laid on her bed. Her back pack sat on the end of her bed, placed there by Thurin. She closed the door quietly, unlaced her boots and toed out of them, before heading to her bed to sit down.

Her mind was racing. The wolf in her wanted to run, but felt trapped in the room by the words of the Marrok, Alpha of the Alphas, and it irked her to no end. She was a creature of movement, of never stopping, of moving forward. Why stay still? The human side of her said that she must think about it, to make sure her choices would not affect anyone negatively.

It was clear to her that Bran had considered every possibility before making the plans for her. It was also clear that he thought her to be unrefined and that she needed to be seen as some kind of porcelain doll that was also a leader of society. Not something that could lose control and would go terrorizing the world over. Her wolf grinned at the thought of terrorizing the world just to see them squirm. Okay, maybe she needed a vacation.

**Please Review! I really do appreciate the feedback even it is just a quick "I liked this chapter" note sort of thing!**

**Until Next Time,**

**SOPROL**


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note:****Just a quick note before the chapter. Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Canadian readers! Thank you for the reviews from Lonely Rider and babesrus2! I will keep writing as much as I can and I hope I will keep up with my fresh approach to these characters! **

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own Patricia Briggs' characters or themes. I am not making any money from this story! I only own Kira and Thurin along with the Beacon Peak Pack!**

**Chapter Four**

Kira stared out of the window of Samuel's car. She was sitting in the back behind Samuel who was driving with Arianna sitting tensely in the passenger seat. Kira's wolf paced beneath her skin, hating being stuck in the back seat with no control of the car, but since Samuel was more dominant than her and Thurin took her jeep back to Beacon Peak, she was stuck. It only took about nine hours until Kennewick came into view. Kira looked at it with contempt. The buildings might not have done anything wrong, but to Kira, they represented her own personal hell. Her banishment from her pack. She couldn't shake that she had done something wrong, but Bran assured her that it was not something that she did to her pack, but rather he was doing this to avoid a potential disaster if her control slipped. Clearly, something that she had done had given Bran the idea that she was losing control.

"I was told to bring you first to Adam and Mercy's when we arrived. Warren will be there to bring you to his and Kyle's house after dinner." Samuel said gently, breaking the silence since they first got in the vehicle that morning.

"Okay." Kira responded quietly, not even bothering to stop looking out the window as Samuel drove the residential streets to Adam and Mercy's house. It would not do her any good if she argued, not that she had not already tried that with Bran. It got to the point where he forbad her from leaving the house without him, Samuel or Charles with her, which never happened until this morning.

Silence swarmed the vehicle once again until Samuel pulled up to Adam's house around mid afternoon. Samuel turned off the vehicle before turning his seat towards Kira.

"Try to find what Da believes you have lost. Use this time to become the Alpha we know you to be. I know that you are the first woman to become an Alpha and the youngest so we are going into uncharted waters from here on, but the other two women who are Alphas in Canada have not been having the issues you are having. We are not sure if them being significantly older has anything to do with it, but Da doesn't want you to break the hope that women can be Alphas too without losing themselves to their wolves. Just, give this a chance." Samuel said.

Kira looked at him straight in the eye for a second before looking away. "I can try, but you know how much I love change and losing control over anything." She said bitterly.

"Just, try." He said.

Kira did not respond. She just grabbed her bag that was beside her and left the vehicle. She walked slowly up to the door before closing her eyes for a second while knocking on the door. It swung open to show Jesse, Adam's daughter. She had grown since the last Kira had seen her and had matured into a woman of twenty years, though her rebellious nature showed through the pink highlights in her hair.

"Hey Jesse." Kira said quietly with a smile. "How long did it take before your dad stopped grumbling about the pink?"

"What makes you think he has stopped?" Jesse said with a grin. She opened the door wider to let Kira in. "Come on in, Kira. Dad is in the garage with Mercy and Warren."

Kira walked in before putting her bag down by the door against the wall. Slipping her shoes off, she followed her nose and ears to the door to the garage. It was closed, but Kira just slipped through before closing it behind her. Warren was standing by the opposite wall watching Adam and Mercy circling each other before coming together, trying to hit each other in various kicks and punches. Kira watched them as well, observing that even though Mercy was not a werewolf, she held her own with Adam who had the experience of army training with years of experience over her. It was only about five minutes later when Adam had Mercy pinned underneath him that Warren cleared his throat. Adam looked up at Warren before looking the other way to see Kira. Mercy used this distraction to kick Adam off of her and to end up on top of him. Kira smiled at her tenacity.

Adam just stood up, bringing Mercy along with him before turning to Kira. Mercy went to grab two bottles of water that sat by Warren before walking back to join her mate in the middle of the mat.

Kira knew that Adam was more dominant than her, but just barely more, which made it difficult for her wolf to show respect to Adam without losing her pride as an Alpha. She simply nodded from her seat on the step by the door, a compromise between her wolf and human sides.

"Kira." Adam started in greeting.

"Adam," Kira responded, getting up from her seat, "Mercy."

"I would like to welcome you to the Columbia Basin Pack. Kira, I welcome as one Alpha greets another, but also as one friend greets another. You are welcomed into the pack as a member who is outside of the pack structure, who is expected to be here with the rest of the pack, but is not allowed to challenge or be challenged for pack status. This way, you are honoured as an Alpha of another pack, but also welcomed to run with us and to find the comfort of pack with us so long as you fight with us to protect our home. What say you to these terms?" Adam said formally, his words reeking of pack power.

Kira looked right into his eyes. "I agree to these terms. I will use my power as a dominant wolf to protect those who you have sworn to protect, to run with you, and to not challenge your wolves so long as they do not challenge me. I also swear to not antagonize your wolves so long as they do not antagonize me first. What say you?" Kira put her hand out to Adam, letting her Alpha power mix with his in the air.

He grabbed her forearm just below the elbow. She reciprocated the motion to Adam, grabbing his forearm firmly. "Agreed."

And just like that, she knew she was stuck there with wolf magic holding her to her words to Bran and to Adam to go through the motions of not an Alpha, but dominant female wolf, to discover herself, and to find out what is causing her to lose control.

"Well, now that the formalities are over," Mercy started, "how have you been, Kira?"

"I could be better since He Who Rules Over Us All has decided that I was not good enough as I was." Kira said with a slight smile. "How have you been?"

"Good, we've been good, though we are starting to get a bit jumpy with the past six months being so quiet." Mercy said with a chuckle. "Adam is rather still annoyed with Jesse dying her hair, but I just keep reminding him that it is just hair."

"Can we not talk about me as if I am not here?"Adam said, "Besides, it is supper time." He walked inside, leaving the rest of them to follow.

Warren stopped her before entering. "Glad to see you again, Kira." He said, giving her a one arm hug. They had met a few times at the Alpha meetings when Adam could not attend. Adam kept Darryl around the pack while Warren attended to werewolf politics and Adam dealt with his government contacts.

Kira grinned at him. She liked Warren. He was a good friend who did not hold it against her for being an Alpha and female, unlike a lot of the other Alphas at the meetings. He respected her for her ideas and her willingness to protect others who trusted her to protect them, just like she respected him for never giving into social pressures of antagonizing her and the other two women who attended the meetings as Alphas. The other two women did not show up to every meeting, choosing to send their seconds in their place, but Kira chose to face the music each and every time.

"You as well, I cannot wait to meet your Kyle after all this time." She said, returning his hug.

They entered the house, closing the garage from the rest of the house behind them. Warren directed her to the kitchen where Mercy was taking out a casserole from the oven and Jesse taking a salad from the fridge. Clearly, they were not expecting anyone else besides the five of them. Adam was setting up the table with utensils. Kira approved. She was a big fan of leading through example, not simply sitting and telling people to do things for them. Warren walked to the cupboard for glasses before grabbing the pitcher of water by the sink. Soon enough, the table was set and everyone was sitting around, eating happily.

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**SOPROL**


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